3/22/2020 Odile Pierre - Wikipedia

Odile Pierre
Odile Pierre ([ɔ.dil pjɛʁ]; 12 March 1932 – 29 February 2020)
Odile Pierre
was a French organist, composer and academic teacher.[1] She
was the organist at La Madeleine, Paris, and taught organ and
improvisation at the Conservatoire de Paris. The last student of
Marcel Dupré, she played around 2,000 recitals internationally
and made recordings.

Contents
Biography
Recordings
Publications
Awards
References
External links
Odile Pierre in 1990
Born 12 March 1932
Biography Pont-Audemer,
Normandy, France
Born in Pont-Audemer, Pierre grew up in Loiret. At age seven, Died 29 February 2020
she attended a recital on the Cavaillé-Coll organ of the Church of (aged 87)
St. Ouen, Rouen, by Marcel Dupré and then took an interest in Paris, France
the instrument.[2][3] She was an organist and choir leader at the
Education Conservatoire de
église de Barentin at age 15.[4] She attended the Conservatoire de
Rouen, where she studied with Norbert Dufourcq,[2] Maurice Rouen
Duruflé,[5] Noël Gallon and Marcel Lanquetuit,[4] and the Conservatoire de
Conservatoire de Paris, where she with Dupré, awarded a first Paris
prize for organ and improvisation in 1955, with unanimous Mozarteum
approval of the jury, to which Jeanne Demessieux belonged. At
age 23, she was the youngest in his class to receive this Occupation Organist
distinction.[2] She became Dupré's last living student.[6] Pierre Academic teacher
took advanced organ classes with Fernando Germani in Siena,[4]
Composer
and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg with Franz Sauer.[2]
Organization Conservatoire de
Pierre was assistant organist to Jean-Jacques Grünenwald at the Rouen
Paris church Saint-Pierre de Montrouge from 1955 to 1957.[4] She
La Madeleine, Paris
taught organ and music history at the Conservatoire de Rouen
from 1959 to 1969. She was the organist at La Madeleine, Paris, Conservatoire de
from 1969 to 1979, succeeding Demessieux[7] in a post which Paris
Gabriel Fauré and Camille Saint-Saëns held before.[3] Pierre Awards Legion of Honour
taught organ and improvisation at the Conservatoire de Paris
from 1981 to 1992.[2] Among her students were Michael Matthes, Ordre national du
the organist at Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois in Paris,[3] and Ignace Mérite

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Michiels.[8] She also taught at the Scuola Internationale d'Alto Perfezionmento Musicale in Perugia
and gave master classes internationally. She was also a jury member in international organ
competitions.[2]

In 1977, Pierre represented France at the International Organ Congress in Washington, D.C., and
Philadelphia. She gave over 2,000 organ recitals throughout her career, including 12 tours to the U.S.
and 6 to Asia.[2] She performed at major festivals and played as an organ soloist with conductors
including A. de Bavier, Pierre Dervaux, Lorin Maazel and Georges Prêtre.[2] She was a member of the
Commission technique consultative pour les orgues (Consultative Commission for the Restoration
and Construction of Organs) in Paris from 1977.[2]

Pierre was married to Pierre Aubé. She died on 29 February 2020 at the age of 87.[3][6]

Recordings
Pierre made several recordings, especially for RCA.[2] She recorded works by Charles-Marie Widor,
including his Symphony for Organ No. 5, played on the Sandtner organ of St. Ulrich und Afra in
Augsburg.[9] In the 1980s, she recorded at the organ at the Nieuwe Kerk in Katwijk aan Zee, built by
Van den Heuvel.[4]

Publications
Pierre composed organ pieces published by Éditions Alphonse Leduc, Schott and Edizioni Carrara.
She was the editor for the works of Alexandre Guilmant[2] for Éditions Bornemann.[4] Among her
compositions are:[7]

Fugue-scherzo pour quatuor à vent

Cantiques et airs bretons
Quatuor sur deux Noëls hongrois

Awards
Pierre received awards including:[2]

Silver Medal of the City of Paris

Officer of the Legion of Honour
Commander of the Ordre national du Mérite

References
1. "Décès de l'organiste Odile Pierre" (https://www.resmusica.com/2020/02/29/deces-de-lorganiste-
odile-pierre/). ResMusica (in French). 29 February 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
2. "Odile Pierre" (http://www.musimem.com/pierre-odile.htm). musimem.com (in French and
English). 2001. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
3. "L'organiste Odile Pierre est morte dans sa 88e année" (https://www.francetvinfo.fr/culture/musiqu
e/fete-de-la-musique/l-organiste-odile-pierre-est-morte-dans-sa-88e-annee_3847679.html).
FranceInfo (in French). 1 March 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
4. "Franse organiste Odile Pierre (87) overleden" (http://www.orgelnieuws.nl/franse-organiste-odile-
pierre-87-overleden/). orgelnieuws.nl (in Dutch). 29 February 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
5. Ebrecht, Ronald (2002). Maurice Duruflé, 1902-1986: The Last Impressionist (https://books.googl
e.de/books?id=YWw9LsbquXEC&pg=PA25). Scarecrow Press. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-46-166963-0.
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3/22/2020 Odile Pierre - Wikipedia

6. "L'organiste Odile Pierre est morte dans sa 88e année" (https://www.francemusique.fr/actualite-m

usicale/disparition-de-l-organiste-odile-pierre-82101). francemusique.fr (in French). 3 March
2020. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
7. "Odile Pierre" (http://www.editions-delatour.com/en/317_pierre-odile). Editions Delatour (in
French). Retrieved 2 March 2020.
8. "Ignace Michiels" (http://www.flandersmusic.be/identity.php?ID=135868). Flanders Music Centre.
Retrieved 17 August 2010.
9. "Odile Pierre spielt Widor" (https://en.schott-music.com/shop/odile-pierre-spielt-widor-no269354.h
tml). Schott Music (in German). Retrieved 2 March 2020.

External links
Literature by and about Odile Pierre (https://portal.dnb.de/opac.htm?method=simpleSearch&cqlM
ode=true&query=idn%3D13448505X) in the German National Library catalogue
Odile Pierre (https://www.discogs.com/artist/Odile+Pierre) discography at Discogs
Odile Pierre (https://www.france-orgue.fr/disque/index.php?ior=1&org=Odile+PIERRE) france-
orgue.fr
Odile Pierre (https://www.muziekweb.nl/en/Link/M00000274484/CLASSICAL/Odile-Pierre)
muziekweb.nl
The organs of Paris / Sainte Madeleine (https://www.organsparisaz4.vhhil.nl/Ste%20Madeleine.ht
m) organsparisaz4.vhhil.nl

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